IJmuiden Sea Lock Project – December Update

This month, work will continue on the construction of the gate chambers for the new sea lock at IJmuiden, the Netherlands.

“The floors are nearly completed and construction of the walls is starting now,” the Port of Amsterdam said. “Construction work in the other cofferdams continues as normal. Gantry-like structures, onto which cranes will be installed later, are built on top of the cofferdams.”

The cofferdam for the vertical lock gate recess is now being pumped dry. The last diaphragm walls for the lock chamber walls have now been installed and construction work on the new flood defense continues.

Construction of the walls of the gate chambers

In December, the last concrete pourings will take place for the floor of the inner head gate chamber. After completion, contracting consortium OpenIJ will continue with the construction of thick concrete walls on top of the floors of the inner and outer heads. Concrete will be poured in several layers, each layer being 3.5 meters high. Construction of these walls will continue until into next year, reported the port.

Construction works in other cofferdams near the inner head

Near the inner head, OpenIJ is not only building the gate chambers, but work is also continuing in other cofferdams. In November, a gantry-like structure has been built on top of the cofferdam of the inner lock sill. The structure acts as a movable platform on top of which a crane will be installed later.

In December, a similar structure will be built on the cofferdam of the outer lock sill. Next month, the cofferdam for the vertical gate recess will be pumped dry to enable concrete pouring at 10 meters below water level. The vertical recess is necessary to create a watertight seal between the gate and the lock chamber wall when the gate is closed.

Diaphragm walls for the lock chamber walls

The last diaphragm walls for the lock chamber walls have been installed. The diaphragm wall grabs have been moved to the construction site of the dividing dam to work on the new flood defense between the Middle Lock and the new lock.

The diaphragm wall grabs will fill up the area in order to move the flood defense in a seaward direction. The dividing dam will act as the new flood defense structure connecting the new sea lock with the Middle Lock.